Tensioning device



Dec. 13, 1938. c, H} RAMSEY 2,139,913

TENS IONING DEVICE Filed'Jan. 21, 1937 3 Sheets-Sheet 1' I INVENTOR. v a al/mm? fyl ATTORNEY.

Dec 13, 1938. c H, M 2,139,913

TENS IONING DEVICE Filed Jan. 21, 1957 I a Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR, fizzy/ d A. Rummy ATTORNEY.

Patented Dec. 13, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

This invention relates to so-called Palmer machines, to wit, in which an endless quite thick flexible element (known as a blanket) of considerable width and longitudinal extent is made to travel around and with a rotating drum in such manner that a fabric to be treated may be entered between the blanket and drum and, havingtravelled between them and more or less completely around the drum, issue from between them.

In order to provide for admisison of the fabric to and its delivery from between the blanket and drum the blanket is arranged to form What may be termed two loops, one of which embraces the drum directly, except for the intervention of the fabric, and the other of which embraces the first loop, there being guides which maintain bends or bights in the blanket where the two loops merge into each other and other guides for the rela- 2 tively outer loop. One of the guides is usually shift-able for varying the tension of the blanket according to the requirements of the particular fabric being treated.

Heretofore there has been no means by which it could be determined just what the tension of the blanket was. This was left entirely to the skill of the attendant. Of course this was open to the fault that he might neglect to have the tension precisely suficient for any particular piece of fabric even if it was within the possibilities of his skill to make it so. But a more serious fault was that he might unwittingly leave the tension excessive with respect to any particular piece of fabric with the result that the blanket would be tensioned to a degree not necessary, and of course the more usual this condition obtains the shorter is the life of the blanket. Sometimes the blanket is, through carelessness or lack of skill, even operated at a tension so high as to reduce the blanket to a no longer serviceable condition.

Since the blankets usually cost an amount running into four figuressometimes as much as $ll00-the possibilities in respect to deterioration or incapacity of the blanket for continued performance of its proper function will be obvious.

By this invention I provide novel means for varying the tension of the blanket as well as for indicating the degree of such tension.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a Palmer machine embodying this invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged side elevation of a fragment thereof at the left-hand upper corner of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3, Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is an elevation of certain parts shown in Fig. 3. viewed from the right, the housing and another part appearing in section; and

Figs. 5 and 6 are, respectively, inside and edge I elevations of a certain disk l6.

In the opposite sides i (only one being shown) of the frame is journaled the mentioned drum 2. The endless blanket exists, as usual, with a part 3a thereof forming its first-mentioned loop and w the remaining part 31) generally forming a loop within which is the first-named loop. Where these loops merge they form bights or bends (at the right) supported by the usual guides 4 and 5, there being a space 6 between such bights by which the fabric may on the one hand enter and on the other depart from between the blanket and drum. At 1 is a smaller drum journaled in the frame and around which the blanket is also trained with bights therein maintained by the guides 8 and 9, the former of which will be hereinafter referred to and the latter of which is a shaft journaled in bearings in the ends of screws, such as the screw it which is adjustable lengthwise (to vary the tension on the blanket) by 25 turning, with avwrench, the worm H and so rotating a worm-wheel i2 supported in the frame and forming a nut on the screw. There are other guiding means for the blanket at it, being shafts or equivalents. so

The guide 8 is a beam or roll forming part of what is a rotary structure extending across the frame and journaled in the frame sides, its intermediate portion (here including the beam 8) being eccentric with relation to its journal portions. 35 (Only one of the journal portions and the part of the frame-side in which'it is mounted are here shown, it being assumed that the other such portionbeing of course concentric with the firstand the part of the frame-side in which 40 it is mounted are duplicates, respectively, of each other.) Thus:

A journal portion is formed by a member [4 which is here a gear, as shown, and to the hub I la of this. gear is secured, in eccentric relation thereto by a screw I5 extending through said hub,

a bar Ed on which the beam or roll 8 is preferably free to revolve. Since the bar will usually be of such diameter as to extend beyond that of the hub, and in order to facilitate assembly, there 50 will usually be provided an intermediary disk I6 which is eccentric with the bar and has a boss lta concentrically countersunk in the hub Ma and is fixed thereto by a screw I1 and which has a flange |6b forming an arcuate seat for the end 55 of the bar, which is concentric with the screw l5. The said member I4 is journaled in ballbearings IS in the opposite walls of a housing I9 which forms a part of the frame-side l. The outer wall of this housing has an arcuate slot 20 concentric with said journal portion and concentric with this said Wall may have a dial 2| with which may coact a pointer 22 marked on a stub 23 projecting through the slot from said journalportion. a

The said rotary structure is geared with another rotary structure which here comprises a shaft 25 having a pinion 25a meshing with gear i i and being journaled in ball-bearings 26 in the housing and having aflixed thereto a helically grooved pulley 21. Around this pulley and occupying its groove is the coiled end of a cable 28 which has attached thereto a weight-carrier 29 adapted to support a weight or weights 30.

When the guide 9 is adjusted to the left in Fig. 1 the tension on the blanket increases, and when said guide is adjusted to the right such tension decreases. Thus, in the first case the part of the rotary structure with which the blanket has running engagement (i. e., eccentric part 8-8a) is being shifted more and more toward dead-center position, or toward the position where gravity acting on the weight will be augmented by the positive resistance incident to such dead-center condition), wherefore the degree of tension on the blanket increases. Conversely, in the second case said part of the rotary structure with which the blanket has running engagement is being shifted more and more from dead-center position to the position where the weight alone is coacting with guide 9, wherefore the degree of tension on the blanket decreases.

If a pointer and dial (as a dial marked to show pounds per inch of width of the blanket at given positions of said rotary structure) be provided it is manifest that the precise degree of tension determined by adjustment of worm H and hence of guide 9 may be indicated and so observable by the attendant at any time. Since the indicating is in pounds per inch no adjustment or change therein is necessary when a blanket of any width is changed for one of any other width. Sometimes the blanket during a treatment of fabric undergoes change in tension, as by shrinkage incident to wetting, and this being indicated the operator can make the necessary adjustment at II.

My invention is not limited to application to a so-called Palmer machine. Essentially it comprises an endless flexible element, as the blanket; devices maintaining bights in said element and around which it travels, one such device being here the guide 9 and the other comprising gear I4 and bar 8a; supporting structure for said devices having that part thereof in which one such device is supported adjustably relatively to the other device to vary the tension of said element (such part in the present instance being afforded by the screws 10) and one such device being rotatable in said structure and having its bight-maintaining portion eccentric of the axis of rotation of such device; and means (as the cable and weight) yieldingly urging the lastnamed device in the rotative direction to coact with the other device to hold said element in tensioned state.

7 Having thus fully described my invention what I claim is:

1. In combination, an endless flexible element and devices maintaining bights therein and around which said element travels, supporting structure for said devices, means in said structure for adjusting one such device to vary the tension on said element and one such device being rotatable in said structure and having its bightmaintaining portion eccentric to the axis of rotation of such device, and means yieldingly urging the last-named device in the rotative direction to coact with the other device to hold said element in tensioned state.

2. The combination set forth in claim 1 characterized by the last named means being gravityactuated.

3. In combination, with supporting structure, a rotatable structure including a member journaled in said structure, a disk arranged in a plane perpendicular to the axis of and flanking the first-named member and having an arcuate seat at the side thereof remote from and arranged eccentrically of said member, a bar having one end portion seated in the seat, and a screw penetrating said member and disk and screwed into the bar and rigidly securing said member, disk and bar together.

CLIFFORD H. RAMSEY. 

